The Interlake Eastern Health Foundation is continuing to support health-care services across the Interlake-Eastern health region, with recent funding for equipment and programs.
The foundation received a number of donations that are supporting the region’s communities, and it’s implementing a new strategic plan to address gaps in health-care services.
Averill Stephenson, who took over as IEHF executive director in May 2023, said the fundraising organization is dedicated to improving the quality of life for residents.
“We really want to focus on advancing the health and wellbeing of our communities and partnerships and relationships across this large geographical region,” said Stephenson, who has a background in community fundraising with organizations such as Muscular Dystrophy and the MS Society, and is a certified fitness instructor through the Manitoba Fitness Council. “There are a lot of groups that do fundraising in communities, such as ladies auxiliaries and hospital guilds, and we want to work together with them to benefit the health of the community.”
With almost 134,000 people living in the Interlake-Eastern health region – plus a significant population of summer residents – the foundation makes investments in health-care equipment, facilities and projects to improve health outcomes and reduce health disparities, as well as funds projects that support recruitment, retention and staff training.
Its mission is to improve health care in the region’s communities through collaboration with stakeholders so that residents can access care close to home.
When she assumed the executive director position last year, Stephenson said the board had started the process of creating a new path forward through strategic planning and re-branding to enhance the foundation’s visibility among the public.
The foundation is currently identifying priorities in the health region and looking at ways to fill any funding gaps.
“We know the region right now has two expansions underway to increase the number of beds. One is in Selkirk and one is in Ashern. A big portion of that is covered through government funding, but there are things that aren’t covered. We want to see how we can help fill those gaps,” said Stephenson. “Staff accommodations, for instance, is a huge expense for Ashern. The number of beds at the hospital is increasing, but we need to make sure we have resources available for staff to live in those communities. We’re looking at what we can do to finding housing or rental properties for those staff. The foundation acts as a hub in the wheel, connecting all the players and finding ways we can be innovative and create solutions to problems.”
At times, community groups can secure funding for certain health-related projects, but they can also work with the foundation on projects that lack funding support.
“We will work with groups to determine strategies to engage the community. The people on the ground they know their community their community knows them. And together we’ll figure out how to make projects happen,” said Stephenson.
One of the foundation’s recent funding initiatives was the purchase of a reclining chair for the family room in the palliative care unit at Selkirk Regional Health Centre. That was made possible through a $5,585 donation from Gerdau, a global steel producer with a mill and recycling facility in Selkirk. And an anonymous donor provided $10,000 for the Beausejour Hospital to thank staff who gave them a “second chance at life.” The hospital will be acquiring rehabilitation equipment for patients recovering from stroke and other mobility challenges.
“We also did our first-ever holiday campaign in December, and the funding from that is being used to support frontline health-care staff training,” said Stephenson. “We’re providing some palliative care training for health-care workers who work directly with patients both in hospital and in communities but primarily in home care at this point. The health region does have a training budget, but oftentimes they can’t provide the amount of training we need for the number of staff we have.”
The foundation also received funding that will enable the health authority to train staff internally. The new trainers can then deliver programs to nursing staff, who typically have to go to Winnipeg for training.
To enhance donations, Stephenson said the foundation board has had a number of conversations about holding a lottery fundraiser, similar to those run by Winnipeg hospitals.
“We’re probably going to do something on a smaller scale. We’ve never done anything like this so it would be a pilot to see what the appetite is like in our region. We probably can’t get a million-dollar home [for the grand prize], but we may look at doing a 50/50 or something similar in the next six months or so,” said Stephenson. “You never know, there may be a donor out there who’d be interested in getting involved with a foundation-run lottery, and we’d absolutely love to talk to them to see what’s possible.”
Stephenson said the foundation is looking for new members to join its volunteer board.
“It is a great way to give back to your community and work alongside others who want to make a difference,” she said.
For more information about the IEHF and donations, contact Averill Stephenson at (204) 485-5139 or visit www.iehf.ca
